We should not be exporting oil, gas, coal

Re: “A green-energy future is still a long way off,” comment, July 31. Jock Finlayson of the Business Council of B.C. has it wrong. Environmentalists are not saying that Canada needs to abandon the carbon economy because other countries are doing so; we are saying Canada should abandon it because it is leading to harmful climate change.

If we were simply reacting to global markets, then we could try to make extraction and transport of oil, gas and coal as efficient as possible, and promote export of all three. But we know that carbon emissions need to be drastically reduced, and that Canada needs to help in this global effort. We should not be exporting oil and gas, and certainly not coal.

Finlayson doesn’t mention climate change. It is hard to believe that he has never heard of it, but it is easy to believe that the Business Council of B.C., which he represents, would rather deny it, or at least pretend that it does not exist.

Finlayson predicts that change will be slow. This is the standard conclusion of a business council that represents the present state of industry. Change will come from new members who are not yet represented, and will result in loss of members who try to protect their share values by claiming that their roles are significant and safe.

The Business Council of B.C., like the rest of us, is passing through interesting times. Change might come sooner than they think. Jim Gower Sidney